Claude Bourque

Claude Bourque was a junior, senior and minor league hockey star who never enjoyed the same level of success in the NHL.

Bourque was first given a chance to play with the Montreal Canadiens in 1938-39, thanks to a trade from the cross-town rivals, the Montreal Maroons. But unlike much of their glorious history, the Montreal Canadiens of the late 1930s were not a very good team.

That first season Bourque played in 25 games, where he posted a 7-13-5 record. Interestingly, Bourque apparently wore jersey #19.

Bourque's second season with the Habs was not a whole lot better. He was in the nets for 36 games, going 9-24-3. He was even loaned to the Detroit Red Wings for one game that same year, replacing the injured Tiny Thompson for a game on February 15th. Bourque was tagged with another loss there, falling by a 3-1 score against the New York Rangers.

In April 1940 the Canadiens trade Bourque to the New York Rangers, although he would never play in the National Hockey League again. He would star in the AHL for a couple of seasons before serving with the Royal Canadian Air Force in 1942. After his discharge from the war, he did not return to the nets.

Claude Bourque died in Ottawa, Ontario on May 13th, 1982. He was 67 years old.

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Paul Gauthier

Paul Gauthier was a tiny goalie, just 5'5" tall and only 125lbs! Despite his diminutive size, Paul played hockey for 14 seasons.

Born and raised in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Paul played his junior hockey with the MJHL's Winnipeg Monarchs. Once his junior career ended he went on a 14 year career with 16 different pro teams (he played for several teams twice, too) in 8 leagues!! His journeys stints in places like Pittsburgh, Minneapolis, New Haven, Spokane, Seattle, Kansas City, Washington, Buffalo, Ottawa, Houston, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Omaha!

Despite his lengthy career, he only saw one game in the National Hockey League. Playing for the AHL New Haven Eagles at the time, Gauthier was loaned to the Montreal Canadiens for the night of January 13, 1938. Habs starting goaltender Wilf Cude was sidelined for the night with an injury, and Gauthier was brought in on an emergency basis as backup goaltenders were not in practice back then. Gauthier, apparently wearing jersey #17, played well in a 2-2 overtime tie against the Chicago Blackhawks.

You'll notice that Gauthier played 70 minutes in his only NHL game. That's because overtime games that season were 10 minutes long, and not sudden death. It was possible for a team to score more than 1 goal in the extra period.

Whatever happened to Paul Gauthier after hockey I am not sure. I do know he died on March 10th, 1984 in Riverside, California. He was 68 years old. 

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Abbie Cox

Goaltender Abbie Cox was a journeyman minor leaguer who played five NHL games in his career, all as an injury replacement for a fallen starter. Cox, born on July 19th, 1904 in London, Ontario actually played his 5 NHL games came with 4 different NHL teams!

Abbie Cox's NHL debut came on February 1, 1930, when Montreal Maroons goaltenders Benedict and Flat Walsh were both unable to play. The Windsor Bulldogs of the IHL loaned Abbie to the Maroons, who defeated the New York Americans by a 7-2 count.

Nearly four years later, while playing for the Detroit Olympics of the International-American Hockey League in 1933-34 he was loaned to the New York Americans to sub for "Shrimp" Worters. The Ameriks lost to Detroit, 5-2.

Later that season he made two appearances for those same Detroit Red Wings, replacing John Ross Roach who was unable to play. He helped the Wings knock off the Maroons 4-1 on December 10, 1933 and later tie the Amerks 4-4 seven days later.


Finally, on February 16, 1936, Abbie was loaned to the Montreal Canadiens as a replacement for Wilf Cude. Cox helped Les Habitants earn a 1-1 tie against the New York Rangers.

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Claude Evans

You know those table top hockey goaltenders? The just stand there, never able to go down on the ice, use their arms or flop like a fish out of water? That best describes the way Claude Evans played.

Evans was the ultimate stand up goalie. In fact he very rarely actually did anything other than challenge the shooter. The shooter would either hit him, miss the net, or score

Evans, however, never really perfected the stand up goaltending routine. The native of Longueuil Quebec played in 4 NHL games with Montreal in 1954-55, allowing 12 goals while going 2-2. He was called up to replace the injured Jacques Plante, but looked particularly shakey in his 4th game against the Toronto Maple Leafs. As a result the Habs called up Charlie Hodge from the minor leagues.

He later played in a game with the Boston Bruins in 1957-58, allowing 4 goals in a late season tie

Evans was a well traveled career minor leaguer who's style was good enough at the level, but not talented enough to stick in the NHL days of the Original Six

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Hal Murphy

Hal Murphy played only one game in the NHL. That one game was surrounded by a strange set of circumstances.

On October 27th, 1952 Canadiens goaltender Gerry McNeil suffered a badly broken cheekbone when he took a puck in the face. A young unproven kid named Jacques Plante was called up and played in 3 games. However in order to protect Plante's amateur status, the Canadiens weren't allowed to use Plante for a 4th game that season. So the Habs asked Hal to step in for the November 8th, 1952 game against Chicago.

Hal had played 3 games that season with the Montreal Royals of the QSHL. Murphy made the most of his only NHL experience. He won the game for the Habs 6-4 over the Chicago Black Hawks. He made 20 saves on 24 shots.

Murphy returned to senior hockey the next day, never to get another chance in the NHL again.

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Lorne Davis

Lorne Davis may have only played in a handful of games in the days of the Original Six. But he dedicated his life to the great game of hockey and was rewarded with 6 Stanley Cups!

Davis is probably best known as a long time scout. He started scouting for the expansion St. Louis Blues in 1966. He later worked for the New York Rangers and World Hockey Association's Houston Aeros, but he is best known for bird-dogging for the Edmonton Oilers during their dynasty years in the 1980s.

According Lorne's son Darrell, Lorne was directly responsible for two of the most quintessential Oilers draft picks of all time. 

"(Grant) Fuhr was one of his draft picks, so was long-time Oilers forward Ryan Smyth. According to Dad, those were the two players he told the Oilers brass they had better select or he would no longer be working for the team. Pretty good choices to put your career on the line."

Davis was a part of the Oilers five Stanley Cups back then, but he also won two as a player. Not a lot people realized he enjoyed a long professional career as a player himself.

Davis had a 14 year professional career back in the 1950s and 1960s, but only 95 games were spent in the NHL. He only scored 11 goals - "They were all big goals" he would joke. Still, he won a Stanley Cup with Montreal in 1953.

Davis never got Stanley Cup rings in his playing days. Instead Montreal issued him a commemorative tie tack (which the family turned into a ring). Many years later the Habs issued Davis a proper Stanley Cup ring. In 1955 Detroit gave him a clock as a thank you. He played that season with the Wings, only to be traded late in the campaign to Chicago. The Wings went on to win the Stanley Cup that spring.

Davis was very proud of his Montreal ring, as well as his collection of rings with the Oilers. When he fell ill with cancer in 1997 and hospital staff removed the jewellery from him, he was said to be greatly disheartened. What pained him the most was that for the first time in years he would not be attending a hockey game.

Davis, who also briefly played with Chicago and Boston, spent a month in the hospital before dying officially from a cancer-induced heart attack. He was 77 years old.

- stick tap to Jennifer Conway

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